Wayback Burgers’ secret sauce for becoming an international comfort food empire
“Established in 1991 as Jake’s Wayback Burgers in Newark, Delaware, the company was originally a roadside hamburger stand. Starting from these humble beginnings, we then grew to a few locations down in Delaware but were still owned by one gentleman. In 2008, he began franchising with the help of John Eucalitto, our current CEO, who brought valuable experience in franchising. They subsequently relocated the headquarters to its current home in Cheshire. Since then, we have evolved from about seven hamburger stands to nearly 200 locations, mainly in the US but also internationally,” he opens.
Across every US location, Wayback offers a consistent menu that goes beyond its beloved hamburgers. “While we have several signature burgers, we are more than just a burger chain; we also feature fantastic chicken sandwiches, chicken tenders, cheese steaks and hot dogs, as well as the Impossible Burger and a Gardenburger, which are our plant-based alternatives. This year, we introduced bowls to our menu as a limited-time offer, giving our guests the chance to have a burger or chicken sandwich without the bun. Instead, they can choose a base of lettuce, French fries or tater tots and build their bowl from there. Additionally, we have a wide selection of side items such as traditional fries and onion rings, as well as fried pickles and fried cheese curds. To top it off, what pairs better with a great cheeseburger than a classic old-fashioned milkshake? Our milkshakes are hand-scooped and blended in a three-spindle blender, made the traditional way with real ice cream, not pulled from a machine or made with ice milk. This makes them the perfect accompaniment to an awesome cheeseburger,” Patrick enthuses.
Carefully curated menu choices
Wayback’s mouthwatering menu is carefully curated by its dedicated product innovation team through an extensive research and development (R&D) process, as Patrick explains. “Our R&D team is made up of people from our marketing, corporate chef operations, training, and executive teams, so it includes a diverse group of individuals. Our marketing team monitors industry trends and works with key vendors to identify what’s gaining traction in the burger space. Based on this research and vendor input, we develop new product ideas and move them through a testing phase. Once refined, we present them to our National Franchisee Advisory Council, a group of six elected franchisees from across the country.
“In October, the council will visit us for an in-person meeting to sample the proposed products and provide feedback. Because these items may be featured in restaurants nationwide, we value their input on taste, operational feasibility, and sales potential. After this feedback, we finalize the limited time offers for the upcoming year’s menu.”
Franchise development focus
Focusing on Wayback’s franchising strategy, Patrick tells us more about how the company selects new franchise locations and owners. “The process begins when a franchise prospect contacts us, followed by initial conversations with our franchise development team. Then, we invite all prospects to attend our Discovery Day at our headquarters for our entire team to meet them. During this visit, we typically prepare one of the new items we are testing to gather feedback from the prospects. Our goal is to interact with them, learn about their backgrounds, and let them experience our culture to determine if they are a good fit. After this, they complete a Discovery Day questionnaire, providing us with feedback, which we then review with the Executive Review Board to decide whether to move forward with the candidate.
“Once a franchise is awarded, it goes to the real estate team, which collaborates closely with our franchise development team. We conduct extensive market research and marketing in areas where we believe Wayback restaurants could be successful. Two years ago, we invested in a real estate modeling platform to analyze our existing restaurants’ sales and demographics, which helps us identify potential new locations across the country. This tool has recently been updated with the latest figures, allowing us to target areas that show promise for future Wayback locations. It significantly reduces guesswork in real estate decisions and enables us to focus more closely on franchise development,” Patrick concludes.
As Wayback continues to expand, it has recently launched first-party delivery for guests to order directly through its app and website. This move is set to further enhance the guest experience and strengthen the brand, as it continues to provide a range of delicious comfort food to Wayback fans across the nation.